The Harder They Fall (1956)

The Harder They Fall (1956)Sure, it's Bogart's last film. And he's great Bogart, once more. But it's also a tough, gritty film on other levels. It is meant to be an indictment of the fixed racket known as professional boxing, and as such it has a lot of clichés and simplifications. Bad guys are really crooked, fighters are really willing pawns in the fixing machine, and boxing is a sham that people seem to ignore. Does it work? Not quite. The writing is the culprit most of all. It's a bit predictable and canned, even considering it came before some other great boxing movies like "Raging Bull" and "Requiem for a Heavyweight." It's also a painfully white movie in an era when boxing had seen a string of boxing great who were black. What elevates it all is the relentless pace as a fighter rises up thanks to Bogart, the press agent Eddie Willis. And the filming of boxing and of night time New York and L.A. is vivid. And the crooked fighting promoter played by Rod Steiger gives is all an edge that he's so good at.The boxers are of some interest—not the leading guy named Toro, a huge lunk from the Andes who can't act worth beans, but a couple of short appearances by actual fighters from the time, and a bunch of bit actors who have honest resilience. Mostly, though, it's Bogart trying to make the movie hold together and give it more than superficial narrative movement. He partly succeeds. What drew me the most was just the series of scenes from the time, the crowds, the hotels and boxing rings, the city streets. It seems to be mostly or entirely location work, and the legitimate filming in these places is great. There are little incidents, too, almost written for Bogart, like a line that resonates with his last role: "A man passes forty, he shouldn't have to run anymore." I wish.

"The last one with Bogie," Kristl said, "You can see he looks weary in this movie. I read somewhere he was ill and he would die very shortly after.""Okay.""Anything to add to the okay?""Not really. The famous Humphrey Bogart, ey? An icon. Like that Monroe girl or Einstein.""Or like Kennedy or Al Capone. A name that goes with an image that goes with an era. Associations.""I seen him only once before in the Big Sleep. The movie we saw together some time ago. With that very pretty girl. ""Bacall.""Lauren Bacall?""The same.""I remember her.""Why doesn't that surprise me.""I just wonder why they do that.""What?""This trick they do with the camera when they film a woman in those times. Like they did in this movie. It's like you're watching her through a fine haze.""Guess they thought it makes her pretty.. Or maybe: prettier.""Men need no haze.""No. Men need to be cynical. Like Humphrey. In this movie he seemed a lot like those hard boiled cynical types he played in various other movies before. I wonder if he was even acting. Maybe he was not, maybe he is just himself.""Or maybe he was always acting?""Acting out the role of an reporter that loses his job and joins the enemy. From reporter to press agent. There is little difference between the two, so it seems. They both write down interpretations of reality and both benefit from it. Somehow though we feel that a press agent is the more objectionable of the two. Is that because he is manipulating the truth too blatantly or that it gets people hurt? Probably both and more.""That is the movie in a nutshell for ya," Henry laughed,"It's rather shocking how they manipulate things. Like how they rig all the boxing matches so that big south American Toro wins them all. But eventually it blows up in their faces. He goes up against a guy that doesn't want to be bribed.""Dirty rotten tricks and the fall guy is some poor sap who thought he would get rich with boxing.""Same old story.""Same old song, " Krisl nodded, And Rod Steiger is, of course, the guy who is making all the money by rigging the games. A cold hearted son of a bitch. I think he must have fun playing that part. He really shines in that role. An old movie, but still entertaining in a way."""If you like old movies, that is. The tale will be repeated in newer movies. There are always people trying to making a buck by bending the rules. History repeats itself.""..first as tragedy, and then as farce.""Huh?""Karl Marx. He wrote that.""Karl Marx? Wasn't he some kind of communist?""Something like that.""Then he must be wrong.""Oh, I couldn't possibly say anything about that.""I don't believe you. You always have something to say about anything.""How do you know that, laddie?""History, madam. Plain old history. Your history."www.meritcoba.com

We live in a golden age for film buffs. The downside for those of us who are old is that we have a chance to easily see films that we once thought great, perhaps because of the effort it took to view them, but in review, do not live up to our memories. As a Bogart fan I had to see this forty years ago as it was his last screen appearance. I thought it a good film, but not remarkable. Now, having seen it twice in the last six months, it far exceeds my previous opinion. Eddie Willis is a complex character and anyone who has been downsized or laid off can identify with the struggle between ethics and the need to make a buck. The rest of the cast delivers at the least adequate, and at best memorable performances. Don't avoid it if you're not a sports fan (I'm not either.) Boxing is simply the setting for a great tale about corruption, rationalization, conflict and redemption. A great film and for Humphrey Bogart a great end to a great career.

A relentless and rigorous dive into the world of Professional Boxing (circa 1956) and its effect on the Athletes and their exploitation and disregard. It is no surprise that this was a flop at the box-office at the time. It has since found its place in the Film-Noir world with its no holds barred expose of corruption.Notable for the last screen role for Humphrey Bogart it has much more to offer. Crisp hands-on Direction with the Cinematography and Lighting and Sets looking as bleak as the Story. It is an uncompromising and unsettling unfolding of a no-talent, but gargantuan, Boxer that believes he is unbeatable. But the fix is in and he is the last one to know. The result is heart-wrenching and real here, with the salty script and hard-boiled performances by all lending credulity with its cynicism and gutsy shout-out in an era of rigid conformity and a faith-based belief in the integrity of larger than life, celebrity based, and powerful institutions from Government to Show Business.This is a dreary and dreadful Fiction based on Fact. Character studies laced with as much pomp and spectacle as need be. There are unforgettable scenes with Bogart and Steiger as well as some just as memorable from the cheap seats.